Planning Commission
Planning Commission
Thu, April 23, 2026
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Planning Commission — April 23, 2026
This was a workshop-style meeting focused on a single substantive item: a review of the draft 2026 Parks, Recreation, and Open Space (PROS) Plan. No binding votes were taken. The session also included a brief Director's Report on upcoming agenda items.
Review of the Draft 2026 Parks, Recreation & Open Space Plan
Planning staff introduced Peter Gil and Parks Director Nicole Oliver (appearing remotely) from the Bellingham Parks and Recreation Department to present the draft PROS Plan. Staff explained that the plan is a functional element of the Bellingham Comprehensive Plan. It will go to City Council for adoption on May 11, and this meeting was explicitly framed as the Commission's primary opportunity to ask questions and offer feedback before that happens. Once Council adopts it, the plan will return to the Planning Commission only for a procedural Type 6 process to formally incorporate it into the Bellingham Plan — at that point, the document cannot be amended.
What the plan is and why it matters: The PROS Plan guides parks and recreation growth over the next 20 years and is updated every six years. Maintaining the plan is required for eligibility for state and federal grants. The current draft represents a significant rewrite from the prior version, inspired in format by the recent Bellingham Plan update. It is organized thematically — trails, parks, recreation, operations, and funding each get dedicated chapters — and incorporates extensive public engagement conducted over 18 months, including a survey of more than 2,000 respondents, four public meetings, five targeted focus groups, and numerous pop-up tabling events.
Key findings from public engagement: Residents strongly value trails and natural areas but want gaps filled and amenities improved. Top requests included year-round restrooms, better lighting, accessibility improvements, more family events, indoor aquatics, a community recreation center, and all-weather athletic fields.
Where Bellingham stands: The city has nearly 30 acres of parkland per 1,000 residents — more than three times the national average for similarly sized cities — and 85 miles of trails, comparable only to Bend, Oregon among peer cities. About 70% of residents can walk to a park or trail within 10 minutes. However, Bellingham scores below national averages and peer cities on recreational amenities, particularly indoor facilities. The plan's strategic shift is toward improving and connecting what exists rather than primarily acquiring new land.
Major proposed projects over 20 years include:
*Parks:* Salish Landing Park (a new 17-acre waterfront community park on remediated land), a waterfront skate park, improvements at Happy Valley Park, Qualcomm Creek athletic fields, East Bakerview Neighborhood Park (25 acres on the north side), Little Squalicum Park bathrooms and accessibility upgrades, Bloedel Donovan non-motorized boat launch accessibility, and Lake Padden shoreline rehabilitation.
*Trails:* 30 additional trail miles, including the Cordata Connector, Bear Creek trailhead and trail, Jill's Court (Sunset Pond to Telegraph Road), the Beta-Baker Trail along Squalicum Parkway, and a Samish Crest corridor connecting Lake Padden to Whatcom Falls Park.
*Recreation:* Added programming in downtown and north Bellingham, new amenities (climbing walls, disc golf, cricket, volleyball, soccer) in existing parks, expanded reservable spaces, and a new recreation center envisioned through the Civic Athletic Complex Master Plan.
*Operations:* Street tree maintenance, a park condition assessment to guide annual repair budgets, a crime/safety assessment for lighting and parking area gating, expanded community garden partnerships, enhanced volunteer programming, and a water conservation plan.
Funding: The department currently operates on about $18 million annually, with roughly 40% from the General Fund and 40% from the Greenways Levy, plus park impact fees, grants, REET, and golf/cemetery funds. The total cost of all projects in the plan is estimated at $225 million — $122 million for growth, $80 million for the recreation center, and $24 million for maintenance and repair. Up to 19 additional staff positions would be needed if all projects are built. Director Oliver noted the Greenways Levy, while flexible and substantial, cannot realistically fund a major recreation center on top of existing commitments; a separate funding mechanism is being developed.
Commission discussion highlights: Commissioners asked substantive questions and offered feedback from their community networks:
One commissioner raised indoor amenities, the skate park (noting the existing facility is inadequate for a city Bellingham's size), managing park restroom use by homeless residents, and the potential for school-parks facility partnerships on aquatics. Staff confirmed that restroom access was among the loudest requests heard and that "Portland Loo"-style fixtures are one approach being explored; aquatics partnerships with schools and private entities are being actively considered.
A question about Greenways Levy funding and Lake Whatcom watershed land purchases prompted a clarification: watershed acquisition is funded through a separate stormwater fee managed by Public Works, not the Greenways Levy.
Commissioners raised safety and gender equity on trails at night, noting that women in particular avoid certain trails after dark. Staff described ongoing LED upgrades, new solar/wind-powered lighting at the pier, and a planned safety assessment to identify where lighting around restrooms and key trail segments is warranted.
Trail connectivity was discussed — staff clarified the plan focuses on physically linking trail segments (often through street networks or developer dedications) and improving wayfinding, not primarily transit connections, though coordination with Public Works on transportation destinations has improved significantly.
One commissioner praised the engagement process and asked about multilingual accessibility. Staff described outreach done with Vamos Outdoors and the Sikh community and confirmed that language accessibility — including Spanish signage, translated program information, and scholarship program outreach — is addressed in the plan and pursued citywide. Signage design increasingly relies on symbols to improve universal accessibility.
The Parks and Recreation Advisory Board recommended approval of the plan on April 8. The Commission offered no formal recommendation (none was required at this stage). Staff will take commissioner feedback and public comments received April 1–20 into account before the May 11 Council presentation.
Director's Report
Planning Director Elizabeth (last name not stated in transcript) outlined upcoming Planning Commission meetings:
May 21: Initial discussion of residential zoning code, specifically the replacement for the existing single-family residential zones to reflect the Bellingham Plan's future land use designations (residential low, medium, high) and finalize what are currently interim middle housing regulations.
June (first meeting): Parking regulations discussion. A citywide interim ordinance suspending parking requirements for development projects has a mid-year deadline. Staff is considering requesting a short extension to allow full Commission discussion before bringing a final recommendation forward.
Early May: No item is currently scheduled for the first May meeting; staff noted it may remain open.
Key Takeaways
The draft PROS Plan heads to City Council on May 11 — this Planning Commission session was the primary substantive review opportunity before adoption. Commissioners provided feedback but took no vote.
Total plan cost is $225 million over 20 years, with the proposed recreation center alone accounting for $80 million; a new dedicated funding mechanism beyond the Greenways Levy is being developed.
Bellingham is exceptionally well-served on park acreage and trails but lags on indoor and recreational amenities — the plan explicitly shifts focus toward improving existing facilities and connectivity rather than land acquisition.
Residential zoning code reform is coming to the Commission on May 21, representing a major next step in implementing the Bellingham Plan's future land use framework.
Parking regulations will come before the Commission in June, with a possible interim extension to allow adequate deliberation before the mid-year deadline.
AI-generated summary from voice-to-text transcript. Not the official record. Verify important details with the source documents linked above.
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the parks, recreation, and open space plan before you and um it's just for discussion purposes um an opportunity for kind of questions and um giving some feedback to the parks department. Um just to kind of remind you of how this fits in with some of the the larger planning efforts.
Um the current PRO plan as they call it and the update will be called the pros plan just so you kind of get that that terminology detail um is something that is adopted as part of the of the comprehensive plan.
Um and so if you recall last year when we went through the update to the comprehensive plan, we um had a series of documents that are kind of adopted as part of that plan and one of them is the pro plan but it was the old version.
So this is now the updated version that is going through that process. Um and the parks department is has a draft together and is going to present on that and get some feedback from you all. Um and then ultimately we'll be going to council to get the plan adopted.
So this is an opportunity before that process happens to see the plan and discuss it. um after it goes through council, it will come back before this group um as part of the type six process to actually adopt it as part of the Bellingham plan.
Um but if you recall how we did that last year with things like the um library strategic plan um that is kind of a plan that's already adopted. So when it came before you, it was kind of a you know adopted as part of the plan as it is or don't.
Um it wasn't like an opportunity for opening it up and amending it. So, this is really the opportunity before it gets adopted by council to take a look at this plan and really ask questions and and provide feedback.
So, with that, I'm going to hand it over to Peter Gil with the parks department. >> Thank you, Elizabeth. Yeah, my name is Peter Gil. I'm with uh the parks and recck department. Um, also joining us tonight is Nicole Oliver.
She's our director. Um, she couldn't be here tonight, but she is on the TV there. Um we are here to provide uh an update on the plan and uh provide some information and get any feedback from you all um prior to taking this to council for consideration on May 11th.
So that is coming right up. So I appreciate you um taking a special meeting to uh to to hear us out and um provide some feedback. I also want to acknowledge that um we did send out the uh public comments we've received um from April 1st till the 20th um on this current draft and some responses in there as well.
So Nicole, did you want to say anything before we kick this off? >> There we go. Hi everyone. Um, thank you for uh reviewing our our work product. This has been a a really um significant rewrite of the pros plan.
Um, it's um modified quite substantially in the framework and format. We kind of were inspired by the work that was done by the planning department on the Bellingham plan. So, um, uh, it's got a lot of of new approach and it's we're really hoping that it's readable.
We've incorporated a lot of the public engagement into the planning document and um we've we've had new chapters that we didn't have before. We're really trying to reflect a more accurate um and realistic and sustainable uh version of a plan that can be a playbook for the parks department that can be clear for the public so we can also say why and how and when we choose to do things.
Um, and we're looking forward to to your feedback. It's been a great process. And I also just want to specifically thank Peter Gil, our planning and um, our planning department coordinator. He's just been amazing in this project.
So, I just want to thank him. >> Thank you, Nicole. Um so the purpose of the plan just really quick um is to guide uh the growth of the parks and wreck department uh for the next 20 years. Fortunately, we get to update it every six years so we don't have to get it all perfect for the next 20, but um that's what it is.
This uh this plan helps us maintain eligibility for state and federal grants um as well. So it's it's really important to the parks department. Uh just a quick slide on the relationship to the Bellingham plan.
Um the Bellingham plan has all the goals and policies um for for the city um and the parks and wreck department um and it has our 20-year growth estimates. So we use those growth estimates to plan for park facilities into the future.
Uh the parks and recreation open space plan is the implementation of those goals and policies. It has an inventory. It has an assessment of all the facilities. Um it provides our service standards which we use to devel figure out what we're going to build in the future.
And it has a capital improvement plan. Um and this this plan goes through the parks and wreck advisory board um for a recommendation and they uh recommended approval on a um let's see April 8th. So uh just a little bit more on um the legacy of Bellingham.
Bellingham has long taken pride in its parks. As far back as 1935, the Bellingham Herald wrote that no city of its size in the Northwest had a finer system of public playgrounds, and that legacy has only grown since.
Um, this is a chart um of parkland over time. So you can see back as far as 1884 uh when Rotor family donated uh land for Elizabeth Park which is our first park. Um that was the beginning and that coincided really with the New York Central Park.
So we were right there with the rest of the country in terms of developing parks. And for the first probably 40 years of the park system, um most parks were donated by wealthy individuals and families or civic groups um that got got funds to develop parks.
A lot of those things like Wakom Falls were established that way until the Great Depression and the New Deal started and there was a big boost then in public funding for the park system. things kind of flattened out over time.
You can see from like 1940 to basically 1990, um the park land was pretty flat. We got new parks along that way for sure. Um but wasn't a lot of new park land until the 1990s when uh the greenways uh leveies started.
And uh the first of the five levies um started in 1990. And you can kind of see how the acreage um changes its trajectory quite a bit um once we once we got the funding for those greenways levies. Um you can see there where Gulbreath Mountain in 2018 was purchased.
That big 2,000 acre bump in that in or spike in that line was Gulbreath Mountain. And that growth continued. Um really in the last five years we've we've done quite a bit of growth. Um from parks we've added four new parks from Storybrook, Cordata Park.
Um we've added Little Squallicum Pier. We've enhanced existing parks like Sunset Pond Trail Loop was just put in. [snorts] Um new trails at 100 Acre Wood. We've done restoration projects, 100 acre wood as well as Boulevard Park uh beach enhancement.
Um staffing has also grown especially on the operations side almost 30% the last five years, right? So we've really been in this pretty big growth phase in the last few years. So let's uh get into the plan.
And I just had to set the stage a little bit there for you and what what what's happening and and kind of the environment we are planning in. Um so the first couple chapters of the plan are really that background um the planning framework.
Um chapters three through six are really thematic um chapters. So if you want to know something about trails, you don't have to dig through the whole document. You can go just to chapter 4. And each of those chapters has our engagement results.
So what the public told us when we were out for the last year and a half. Um an inventory of existing system and our recommendations for the next 20 years for what we would develop. And then chapter 7 is our funding plan.
So with that growth um we have shifted the focus um in this plan to be to moderate the growth a bit. Um shift reflects what we've heard from the public um in the a need to improve what we have rather than build new.
uh to establish uh new yearround amenities so that we can enjoy the winter here. It's sometimes hard to get out, get exercising. Uh provide equitable access uh to park and park facilities. [snorts] Uh improve the connectivity of our existing trails.
We have a whole lot of trails um but they're not always well connected. So tying in that transportation network uh is an important part of uh connectivity and then looking at what kind of uh service improvements we can provide.
So with that um I just want to give a little bit on community feedback or engagement. Um, [snorts] in January of 2025, we had our our parks and wreck advisory or open space community survey. Uh, we got over 2,000 people participated in that.
Um, over 2025, we had four public meetings in person. uh we assembled uh different focus groups, five different focus groups from uh groups that weren't well represented in our survey. So we wanted to hear more from different groups.
And then we had all kinds of popups throughout the year, different tableabling events that we were able to participate in and get um go to the people that were having events. So what did we hear? We heard a lot about um what people love.
They most people spend a lot of time on trails and in natural areas um but wanted to see some of the gaps filled. Um they also wanted to see more completing features in different parks. So, year round restrooms, um better lighting for some of the darker days of the winter, um accessibility features, um so everyone can have access to parks, um better, um wayfinding in the parks as well.
There's also a strong demand for more family events and yearround recreational space. um particularly indoor aquatics and a community recreation center as well as all weather athletic fields. So that's just a snippet of what we've heard.
Um so on to get into what our service standards are and this uh this helps establish what we would develop in the future. And so we looked at four different u criteria and we compared the city of Bellingham to um north some pure northwest cities.
So um as far as Oregon um but mostly in Washington. We also compared uh Bellingham to um nationwide to cities of similar size. So on the quandi like how many park acres per person and how many trail miles we um we're far above.
We have almost 30 acres per thousand people in um in Bellingham. I think nationally for cities our size it's nine acres. So we're like three times at least. Um we have 85 miles of trails. Um similar cities have 15.
Um, the only city that compares is Bend and they have I think about the same amount, maybe a little bit more trails than we do, but nobody else was close. So, on quantity, on the number of things we have, we have a lot on distribution, so how well they're spread out throughout the city.
Um, we did did moderately well. uh 70% of the public can walk to a park or trail um within 10 minutes of their home. So that's pretty good. Um but we can do better there. The condition of our parks, while some of them are aging, they're all in good condition.
Everything is safe. um on the amount the type of amenities particularly recreational amenities indoor and outdoor um we are below the nationwide averages and other peer cities. So that is where we can improve and so that was really helpful to look at all those four things at once.
Um, this map shows that 10-minute walk shed um to parks around the city. Um, as I mentioned, 70% of the population can walk to the parks within 10 minutes. Um, but this plan proposes to add four neighborhood parks over the next 20 years and one community park.
Um, there's some significant gaps in those red areas. um particularly the north north Bellingham and Samish crest area. On the open space side um we're proposing to add 120 acres. Um and this is along um trail corridors, wildlife habitat areas and other ecologically significant landscapes.
As far as uh new trails, this is a map of just the north side of Bellingham, but those orange lines are the proposed trails, proposed connections. Um we're proposing to add 30 additional trail miles. We've heard we heard a lot from the community about how important trails were for multiple goals.
Um, and so we'll be working with private developers, um, and utilizing rightaways wherever possible and purchasing where we can't. So, I'm going to get into some of the projects and actions. Um, but before I do, I wanted to get into how we selected those projects and actions.
Um, we've been asked a number of times how it gets in the into the list. Um well through our inventory um we looked at what what we have and through our public outreach we figured out what we need or what people were asking for.
Um then we prioritized within that um list of of projects and actions based on what those goals and policies are in the comprehensive plan. And then we of course have to hit reality and figure out whether we have funding and staffing to do all those things, right?
And so that's where the priorities within the plan come from. So we'll get into park projects first. This is in chapter 3. Um I talked about one community park in the future. Um that is Salish Landing Park down on the waterfront.
be cleaning up 17 acres of really polluted area um and building a new beach and park down there. Uh there's the development of the waterfront skate park, so adding amenities to existing um parklands. Uh working on developing Lee Memorial Park.
Lee Memorial Park is the area in between city hall and the library. is actually a park. Working with the library to master plan and put some amenities in there. Happy Valley Park uh improving um adding some improvements there and uh replacing the playground.
Qualcomm Creek Park uh is to improve the usability those athletics fields. You notice I I mentioned uh all season usability. So we'll be looking at how we can improve those existing fields. Um, East Baker View Neighborhood Park is a 25 acre park on the north side uh of the city of Bellingham.
Uh, it is on East Baker View near the nursery there. Be trails and recreational amenities added there in the future. Little Squallikum Park, we're looking at adding bathrooms and accessibility improvements.
uh that the use of Little Squall Park has gone way up since we added the pier and so we need some of those other amenities there. [snorts] Blowell Donovan, we're looking at um redoing the non-motorized boat launch and making that accessible.
Lake Padden Park, looking at redeveloping the south or I guess that's east um playing fields there. redoing or re rehabilitating the beach and looking at shoreline enhancement, cleaning up some erosion on the shoreline.
Looking at the trail projects that are in the plan. Um the Cordata connector trail, that image is the Cordata connector that connects Meridian to Cordata Park and the rest of the Cordata neighborhood.
Bear Creek open space is also on the north side of town and developing a trail head as well as almost two miles of trails and parking out there. Jill's Court is uh from the backside of Sunset Pond all the way up to Telegraph Road.
Create that north south connection that we've been um hearing about. working on building out the Beta Baker Trail uh along Squallum Parkway connecting Squallum Creek Park to Cornwall Park and all the way down to Rotor and then Samish Crest master plan.
We uh recently purchased um 65 acres up on Samish Crest that connects two other open space parts. So, we're hoping to be able to connect all the way from Lake Padden Park up and over Samish Crest down to Wakom Falls Park.
A great trail corridor. On the recreation side, we're looking at adding some programming um particularly in underserved areas like downtown and on the north side of town. also um serving some of the um more cultural communities that we have in town in underserved areas looking at uh adding amenities to existing parks.
Um so not necessarily building them but finding places for the amenities that the public has told us they want. climbing or bouldering walls, uh, volleyball, disc golf, soccer, cricket, those kinds of things.
And expanding reservable spaces, um, picnic shelters, um, pavilions, event spaces, and fields that people can play on. Also on recreation, um we recently completed the civic athletic complex master plan which envisions a new recreation center as well as uh updates to the uh fields, the Jerry fields on the north side as well as expansion of the sports plex system.
And so working uh with public and private entities to to figure out how to fund and pay for those improvements. On the service side, looking at uh trying to do a better job of cost recovery in all the programs that we offer, over 2,000 programs per year.
And so we're looking at how can we subsidize or make the cost for basic uh programs like swimming lessons really affordable so everyone can do it. And then the more advanced or competitive level um classes um would be you know full cost recovery and make sure that we are not subsidizing those things.
We also look at right sizing programming. So making sure that we're evaluating each of the programs that we offer every year so that there aren't a lot of weight lists and that we aren't having unfilled spots in our different program offerings.
Now I'm going to shift to uh chapter six which is operations. Um there's quite a few of these but I'm not going to go into all of them. I'm just going to hit some of the the main ones we heard from the public.
Uh we heard a lot about street trees and wanting more and better maintained street trees. So we have a added street tree maintenance needs to an annual work pro work plan. Um we have done a a park condition assessment um with this plan and we will be keeping that up to date so that we can better budget for um annual repairs and maintenance that are needed.
Uh we're looking at doing a a crime assessment for our community parks and looking at where we might add lighting or potentially um gating off parking areas um in closed hours where it's appropriate. [snorts] Expanding the availability of community garden plots through different partnerships.
um as long as those partners are available, those plots are available to anybody from the public. And then leveraging the volunteer program uh to to manage invasives and build uh community input. Um expand that volunteer program.
It's very popular and we get a lot out of it. Um and then develop a water conservation plan to reduce the amount of irrigation water we use and annual water costs. Um this is a chart I added in here just to kind of show how some we're using some of the data um through this.
We're looking at this. This chart shows um our annual visits um in the green bars and then the orange dots are the amount of hours that we spend at each of those parks. You can see how well the amount of hours we spend correlates to how much use a park gets.
Um but there's also places where the correlation isn't really great. And so that provides an opportunity for us to to build efficiencies in our our workforce hours as well as um look at whether we need to add amenities to some parks that are going to need maintenance anyway.
Um so looking at uh using the data to to better work um with our staff and maximize it. So jump into chapter seven. We're looking at um funding. Um we have showing the funding sources we have. Um the largest of the funding sources we pull from is the general fund.
It makes up about 40% of all our funding. Um, greenways levy makes up about the other 40%. And then the the rest is made up through park impact fees, grants, reat, and golf in the cemetery funds. Um, greenways is great because you can use it on capital projects as well as operating costs like staff.
Um, our annual costs vary depending on what gets built and what gets done, but right now it's averaged about $18 million a year and we have 109 benefited employees. So with this plan um all the projects we've we've um scoped out in the plan the total cost come to $225 million.
122 million of that is related to growth costs. 80 million of that is the recreation center and 24 million is repair or maintenance related costs. Um, if we build everything in the plan, um, we're looking at additional staffing of up to 19 people as well.
So, that is all I have. There was a lot in the plan and so that was a quick run through of it. Um, but I am available to take questions or comments or all the above. >> Thanks a lot. as a good document and for all of these meetings where they're informational.
Um I just kind of a general basic question is like what do you think is the most useful way that we can give feedback because I know that we we kind of have a limited capacity really. I mean you've got your own people with the parks that go through this.
You've got the city council that's going to go through it. And so I'm just wondering like what kind of feed feedback do you find most beneficial from us as a group? I think um maybe just relating what you've heard from your network of people, right?
And you know, planning commission represents different groups throughout town and um knowing what you have heard on the ground is always valuable with everybody that we've worked with with all the boards.
We've worked with the greenways advisory committee, the parks and wreck advisory board. They all bring information from their neighborhoods, their community groups to the table, what they know about the park system and what they'd like to see.
So, personal experience is great um to hear from. >> Sure. I'll start with my list because that's, you know, seems like most of the things that I'm thinking of talking about are those types of things.
Um I I think you've hit some of those. Um, I feel like that I always like to say that half of the year Bellingham is just beautiful and you want to be outside all the time and then the other half of the year you go outside but it's maybe not quite as pleasant.
Um, a lot of people here don't care if it's rainy or cold. Um, it doesn't get that cold so it's really not that bad but I mean indoor amenities are somewhat lacking. Um, I I feel like that that's a thing that I mean you've noted on that.
I I I believe in um aquatics, you know, that's a huge one. I feel like that we're kind of lagging behind other places, especially if you go up to British Columbia, it's like, man, they've got a lot of really nice places to swim, indoor spaces, and it's just really, really, really nice to have that um in the colder and darker times.
um skate park. I I feel like it's kind of embarrassing what our skate park is compared to how what size of city we are and kind of that you know that's for young people who a lot I mean that's a I was a skater you know which is maybe I shouldn't share that but um back in the day and and that was like you know you spend so much time out there with your friends and stuff and I see it as the one that we have is kind of scary and um maybe not the best.
Um, we didn't have skatep parks when I was a kid. We just went and broke people's storefront windows and things like that by accident. So, skate parks are good for that too to keep people from damaging other places.
Um, I mean, the other things I think of are just like the um, you know, how do we manage our homeless um, issues? And so, it's like our restrooms. Do we have a a good way to design restrooms so that they don't become spaces that are used in appropriate ways?
Um, and then that's a sensitive issue. So, I know it's one that's kind of like I don't know. I I don't know the right answer, but um I know that we do have homeless people and you can't you can't just ignore that they exist.
So, it's kind of like trying to figure out, you know, do the parks support them or are we looking at ways to minimize their impact or do we just kind of accept it and try to have some kind of a um symbiosis there.
Um, I think that was the main things that that I've kind of heard and seen. Um, so thanks. >> Yeah, if I could just address one of the things that you brought up with the the homeless population. One of the things we have done um and citywide I guess it's not just a parks department is look at those Portland lues um you probably see one down at Waypoint Park right where they're like an indooroutdoor kind of uh facility and they're able to stay open more of the year um and some of the other park and restrooms but it is a real issue and um one of the things we heard almost the loudest from all our community outreach was more access to bathrooms.
So, it's it's one of those things it's hard to hard to juggle those two things. >> That's one last thing and I'll pass it on, but um I'm curious about the uh our public schools. Um I see like I've gone with my family and with other people to like um Happy Valley to the the you know the playground area and the courts and things out there.
And then as well with the aquatics, you know, I'd heard some rumors that there might be potentials for partnering with the public schools in such ways that you have schools that don't really have good aquatics facilities and that you could share costs or share use of of facilities for both um the public schools and uh by the parks and the regular community.
Yeah, I think it's going to it's going to take all all part kinds of partnerships to figure out um a better aquatics uh expanded aquatics system um for the city. So, we're looking at all all the options there.
>> All right, Daniel. >> Sure. So my question kind of goes around the greenways funding. I know of late we've been using a lot of greenways funding for purchasing kind of properties out in the Lake Wacom watershed.
Uh are we looking at I'm curious on what if we're going to change that going forward or if and kind of what legal restrictions we have on greenways funding and how we can use it within the parks in the city.
I could jump in on that one, Peter. >> Right. >> The the Lake Wacom wershed acquisition fund is actually a um fee that's on your storm water bill and it's separate funding entirely than greenways. So, the funding that's going into purchasing land to protect the watershed is is um done by the public works natural resources and they manage that that funding.
And there's it's quite a different level of criteria that they're using to to choose and and to prioritize purchases. And it all has to do with um the best way to protect the waterershed and drinking our drinking water.
As far as the legal um use of greenways funds, the levy uh designates that the fund could be used for development, acquisition, maintenance, climate resiliency. It's pretty flexible and it's guided by this plan.
There's also specific guidance in the resolution that the city council passed along with the levy language that um sets uh goals for percentages of the greenways fund to be spent a certain way. Um, and so this last levy, the fifth levy, allowed us to significantly expand our work in stewardship, urban forestry, invasive species, community gardens, uh, restoration by adding, um, additional staff to do all of those things.
Um, it was a an enormous addition. it almost um doubled the funding from the previous levy because the uh valuation of our community had grown so much. So it it's absolutely the most brilliant thing we've ever done as a community to tax ourselves for greenways.
Um and I don't think though that we're going to be able to get the sort of indoor recreation that we're looking for. we just don't have the capacity to be able to do all the other things we've been doing and continue need to do and with the a a massive um investment like a expanded pool and recreation center.
So that will require an additional funding mechanism that we're working on developing right now. >> Excellent. Thank you for that answer. You're >> welcome. I just want to note one other thing. This is the first time that we've updated the plan that we did not have a public hearing.
Usually we do hear from folks um but because of the new framework of these functional plans um going to uh [snorts] planning commission and then council um it it really has also encouraged us. We've been this public engagement that we've done for this plan has been quite robust and our engage Bellingham has been very useful.
the different surveys that we've done. We also because we at the same time we're working on this plan, we were we were working on the civic center master plan which really um focused a lot on recreation amenities which Bellingham has prioritized the outdoor more than the indoor um over the decades.
And so, uh, it's brought a lot of enthusiasm and momentum toward a recreation center of which we've never really experienced before. So, we're really excited about it. That's why we included the civic center master plan in the pros plan itself, just to like doubly emphasize it, [laughter] so to speak.
But, um, yeah, it's a it is kind of funny. I thought your question at the very beginning, um, Jed was what what what is the purpose of your comments? And often times at planning commission we would have heard you would have also heard from the public that have been participating and either didn't know or did did not feel like the plan reflected what they wanted but we did get quite a bit of additional comments um that we are going to be responding to.
Um Peter did a comment tracker that you guys received as well and so we we really have um shopped this thing around um quite a bit. So anyway, that's all. >> All right, Lisa. >> Get myself off mute here.
Um, actually, you just hit on anything that I would have had a question on. And I just wanted to comment and say, you know, excellent job with the presentation. Uh, so much information. And I wanted to give a good shout out to the Bellingham Plan team who has done an amazing job with getting community comment and getting stuff out there.
Um having all of those events they had to bring public, you know, in to get feed feedback and input and um all of that. So, um, just, uh, thank you for all the information and it's been amazing and, uh, you know, you just hit on everything that I would have had a question on.
Thank you. Yeah, I've been fortunate to go to um some of the civic design uh you know the community meetings for those and the observations that I made and probably the comments that I have as a just a citizen are that I appreciate the plans that are a little bit more practical.
Um, there were some of those plans for the Civic that were a little bit, I feel like, kind of out there. And I think just as far as like being a government and parks, um, unless we have like a billionaire in hiding who's wanting to pony up some major money, um, I like the idea of being, you know, we we we can do cool stuff, but being mindful of just, um, the efficiency of how we use our money and um, not doing something just for the sake of the cool factor.
Um, but I do think that, you know, personally, I mean, it's like people move to Bellingham because of our parks. So, I think it's like, you know, we're pretty special in that even if we don't have maybe the best skate park or the best aquatic center, it's like I don't hear people complaining about that aspect of Bellingham.
So, it's a it's pretty special that way. >> Do you do you realize we do have a new skate park coming at the waterfront? >> Yeah, I've talked to the skate uh skate shop owner and seen some of the plans, so it's pretty cool.
Um Yeah, I'm excited. >> Make sure you knew that. >> Yeah. coming. I guess one other thing which seems small but somebody was just talking to me about it today um when I was interacting with some vomos outdoors folks um was the s related to signage and language on signs and I just didn't hear that touched on and forgive me I didn't get all the way through um the document um but wondering if that has come up in community comments or anything and there seemed to be more of a less on a practical folks didn't know how to interact with the parks because there wasn't signage in Spanish than more of a just inclusivity like a you know a few words in Spanish or something.
>> We did a couple events with Vamos Outdoors Project. Um we did a a very um featured workshop um to get input on what kind of parks they use and what uh recreation they what do they enjoy the most. Um we also participated in their annual um their annual bike days um 2025.
It was great. We got so much good feedback from so many kids and and their parents that couldn't all speak English but their kids all could. So it was great great feedback. Um so we we have heard that also from the seek community.
Um we spent time with the SE community and a lot of the feedback was if we if we had um more information available especially with our basic programs in their language um and people that spoke C or Punjabi in those lessons that they would they would love to learn how to swim and some of those other things that um that they don't always get out to do because they don't understand the language so they're not going to do the things.
So, we definitely did hear that um quite a bit. So, it's in there. >> I also should add that language accessibility is something that we are pursuing citywide um with multiple different arenas and methods and um AI is helping um with some of that as well.
As far as overall accessibility, we do try to on our rule signs use symbols which tend to be a little more useful. Um we try and um keep our wayfinding simple and directional um and try not to use so many words and then it it is um more accessible for more people.
But your your point is well noted. We also found out that um a lot of people didn't know about our scholarship program which is a really great program. So we're really trying to get we've we've got that out in Spanish and uh trying to make everything more accessible.
We try and translate different things on our website when we put out public notices now too, which has been helpful. But it's a it's a big lift um when you think about all the signs that are out there and but I hear what you're saying.
>> Yeah. No question about that. Appreciate it. Like it's well well in hand. >> Yeah. >> Dean. >> Hey. Uh so this is kind of in regards to public lighting in certain areas. uh was something that came up in a runner group I was in.
Um I was like, "Oh yeah, I'm going on these trails." And it's just like, "Why don't you do those trails?" And she and I was talking to a friend. She's like, "Well, I'm a woman. I don't go on those trails at night." Um and that is a kind of a in the long dark that we experience that is sometimes an issue.
And I know that lighting can be very expensive for a city to put in. Um, but I was kind of curious as well as with our dark sky concerns and trying to not enhance light pollution, uh, just kind of a status on where we are on lighting in certain areas and whether that's a priority or whether we're focusing in other areas.
>> Lighting um, it is listed as an enhancement that people have. We did hear from quite a few people about adding lighting and especially in our darker heavily forested parks where like Cornwall is a great example.
Um you can be there sometimes in the late afternoon and you can it's dark. Um we we are adding lights on new trail projects in key areas to try and improve that perception and and experience for folks.
We added um really carefully designed solar and wind powered lights to the pier which got a some people liked it and some people didn't but that's how everything is. So, [laughter] but um lighting is um especially carefully sighted lighting can also be a really important thing to put around restrooms um because it can incre increase the perception of safety and discourage um behaviors that were that are not allowed in the parks.
Um so, it's something that we've heard a lot about. We're also upgrading all of our lighting to LED. That's part of our climate uh push and um it is the the advances that are being made right now in solar powered lighting are quite extraordinary because that's really the real cost when you're talking about lighting a trail.
You have to wire it. And if we don't have to wire it and we can figure out ways, especially on um in some stretches, key stretches around stairways um or key connections where we can add some lighting.
Um that's what we're trying to identify, but that is in the plan to to try and add lighting as well as restrooms. >> It is and it's Yeah, it's in chapter six. We'll be looking at like a septed assessment of all our community parks to figure out if if lighting would be appropriate in those places, >> you know, very exciting.
One other thought on when you mentioned connectivity between trails and all of the planned corridors. Um is that just physically connecting the existing trails with link the missing segments or was that thought of in relation to like public transport stops between parks or other kinds of connectivity?
>> Yeah. >> Just that is that's always a consideration that connectivity. How do people get to the trail if you don't have a car? Um, but generally it was more about how can we make these trails from you the end of one point to the beginning of another connect.
And often that's going to be through the street network in builtup areas. But where it's not, it'll be working with uh developers when they subdivide property to dedicate uh land for trails um to connect those pieces.
Some people comment about some of our trails are pretty segmented where there's like no clear through fair on on some of it because it's the next the next property hasn't been developed and we don't own it so we can't build it.
But um so we'll be looking at trying to increase the way finding when you get to a street and you know there's a trail around there but you're not sure if you go left or right or a block left or a mile left to get to the next trail so that we can connect those pieces for people that aren't familiar with that particular trail.
Um, also it's about um developing better trail guides for some of our corridors through town so that there's branding associated with like a railroad trail or the inter urban trail so you or Watkin Creek Trail so you can get all the way from Lake Watcom to um to the bay.
So, um, a number of different connectivity pieces, whether it's us building a new trail or us just working with the street network to to get that connection. >> I would also mention that um, parks and public works are um, we've really um, improved our coordination on destination planning.
There's also a a pretty major project going on um with in public works to focus on destinations, transportation destinations, and u we've made some real progress in the bike and ped master plans to coordinate trail improvements around where those key destinations are and that they're really looking at our trail network.
We're we're making we're making joint decisions and leveraging jointly um to improve those those connections that have been kind of in the past we've had a tendency to say that's our thing and that's your thing and we're trying to say it's our thing together and making some improvements and funny places that for years it was like no we can't we can't do that.
It's a public works thing or a parks thing. We're doing it together now. All right, last call for anybody. Okay, guess that would conclude this part. Um, do we have any director's uh update? Director's report.
>> Sure. Uh, thanks. Sorry, Elizabeth. Then I had to do a little switch because we were had to be at the county planning commission meeting tonight as well. So appreciate the flexibility. Sorry for changing around.
Um upcoming meetings, we have uh the second meeting in May, which will be the 21st. Uh we anticipate bringing forward some initial discussion of what we're working on for residential zoning. So those are, if you remember back to the the future land use map in the Bellingham plan, that's the residential low, medium, high, and in particular the residential low zone, which is, if you look at our zoning map today, that's the the residential single that you say see across all the different uh parts of Bellingham.
And uh um we are working on the zoning that will replace that and that will be the uh kind of final version of what we now have as our interim middle housing regulations and and the rest of the title 20 residential zoning code.
So we'll be coming forward with some questions uh for you to uh provide feedback on and uh just uh be illustrating some of the concepts that we're considering for that. So that'll be the 21st. And then in June, um I believe it's the first meeting in June, we are um wanting to bring forward the parking discussion.
Uh we have, as you're aware, um we're under an interim, uh parking ordinance that suspends parking uh uh citywide for development projects. And so uh we have the deadline coming up midyear for that. and say we're going to bring forward what the what the proposal is for that to you.
Um and uh there may be an extension requested as part of uh that interim to gain us another month or two to have those conversations. And we're in the in the process of figuring out what exactly that extension may be.
And then just uh after conversations with with you um and deciding whether or not you need more time to talk about it or can come to a recommendation, we'll be we'll be moving forward with that. So, you'll have that in June.
Um, and in May, it'll be the residential zoning. I don't think we have anything on the agenda for the first meeting in May. So, that's something that you guys can um we haven't officially scratched that off the calendar, but we're we're looking at the the list of things we need to bring forward to you.